TOP BHOY MIKA MY PARTNER IN CRIME
Forrest keen for ‘energised’ Lustig to stay at Parkhead
AN exhaustive pursuit for a new right-back has led to an assumption that Mikael Lustig is playing out his final days as a Celtic player. But the Swedish defender’s previous two performances suggest that one last determined push for a new contract is underway.
According to team-mate James Forrest, the Swede’s right-flank partner in crime for much of his seven years in Glasgow, the bulk of the playing squad want him to remain.
Manager Brendan Rodgers has been less forthcoming, revealing only that dialogue with Lustig remains open and that the 32-year-old is fully briefed of the club’s intentions.
In a week where club captain Scott Brown signed a new two-year deal, the absence of a similar announcement regarding Lustig seems ominous.
The arrival of Borussia Dortmund’s Jeremy Toljan on loan would seem to further undermine his position.
Yet Lustig, a jaded figure for much of the season, has looked energised since returning from the club’s winter training camp in Dubai.
Perhaps he has simply been able to work last summer’s World Cup exertions out of his system.
Maybe he is desperately trying to land a new contract, having resisted the overtures of AIK Stockholm regarding a return to his homeland.
Either way, Forrest does not want to see him go.
‘What Mika has done for Celtic has been top class,’ said the 26-year-old winger. ‘He is a top professional and has been a great player at international level, too.
‘His confidence is high just now and I think the clean sheets over the last few weeks have helped.
‘I think he is still as fit as he has been and he has been contributing the assists, too.
‘I don’t know what he is going to do at the end of the season but I hope he stays.’
Signed by Neil Lennon on a free transfer from Rosenborg, Lustig has been on board for each of Celtic’s seven consecutive championship victories and, factoring in his cup haul, is the most decorated foreign player in the club’s history.
Once described by Rodgers as one of the ‘pillars’ of the playing squad, Lustig has deputised as skipper during Brown’s injury absences and holds commensurate standing within the dressing room.
Even so, there has been a growing sense that Lustig’s powers have been on the wane.
Rodgers’ pursuit of Cristiano Piccini — soon to be seen at Parkhead in a Valencia shirt — was an indication that grumbles over the full-back’s form were not confined to the stands or the ranks of the media.
‘Mika is a strong character,’ argued Forrest. ‘I don’t think he will be too bothered by any criticism, he will just keep fighting and wanting to play.
‘He is still doing it at international level with Sweden and he still feels good. It will be up to him and the club but he is big in the changing room, as well as on the park.
‘He is a big character and we all want him to stay. Broony and Mika are the two biggest characters in the changing room and on the park they both help young boys. The same at training.
‘Whichever winger is out there, it’s good to know he is there to help — defensively it’s great for me to know he is behind me.
‘He gives us good cover on that right side and he can also play centre-back, too.’
Rodgers had promised to speak to Lustig as soon as the transfer window closed and, with Toljan on board, that conversation took place first thing on Friday morning.
‘I spoke to him so he and I know where everything is at,’ said Rodgers. ‘He is someone I have a real respect for, so I spoke to him the very first moment I could. We had a nice chat around where everything is at.
‘He is happy with it and will go with it. We will speak again. He deserves the respect of knowing the reasons why we would bring in Jeremy and what it looks like going forward because he has been a great servant for the club. We will see. No final decision has been made on anything.’
It’s likely the Forrest/Lustig axis will remain in place for today’s Premiership trip to McDiarmid Park, a happy hunting ground for the winger, who scored four in a 6-0 win earlier in the season.
‘Everything just clicked that day,’ smiled Forrest. ‘It was good because going into that game we had been struggling to score goals. The performance gave everyone confidence and we kicked on.’
Celtic took advantage of a game in hand to defeat Tommy Wright’s side in midweek and extend their lead at the top of the table to six points, a margin that can be restored if they win again today.
‘We have had that game in hand since the League Cup final and the manager said it was important that we made a statement,’ added Forrest. ‘But we still have 15 games to go and we need to make sure we are at it until the end of the season.
‘We have the experience of being in front but the league is tighter this year. We can’t think that just because we are six points clear that is going to be us.’